If I have an EIN, do I still need an ITIN?

Usually yes. An EIN identifies your business entity (the LLC or corporation). An ITIN identifies you personally. If you have personal US tax filing obligations — most commonly a 1040-NR because the LLC has US-source income flowing to you — the personal filing requires your ITIN, not the LLC's EIN. The two numbers sit on different forms and cannot substitute for each other.

Can I open a US business bank account with just an EIN, no ITIN?

Yes, in most cases. US business bank accounts identify the entity, and the EIN is the entity's ID. Some banks ask for the beneficial owner's tax ID as part of KYC and will accept an ITIN, foreign TIN, or passport at the personal level. The EIN alone — without any personal TIN — is enough at many banks for the corporate account opening.

I'm a foreign owner of a US LLC. Which do I get first?

Get the EIN first. The LLC needs an EIN to open a bank account, set up payment processors, and sign vendor contracts — all of which usually happen before your first US tax filing. The ITIN typically comes later, when you're preparing your first 1040-NR or when a platform requires a personal US TIN on Form W-8BEN. There is no rule that one has to come before the other, but the EIN-first sequence matches the practical timeline.

I got an SSN after I had an ITIN. Do I keep both?

No. Once you receive an SSN, the IRS deactivates your prior ITIN automatically once you notify them. You should write to the IRS ITIN Operation in Austin with your name, prior ITIN, and new SSN to consolidate the records. From that point forward, all your US tax filings use the SSN.

Does having an ITIN make me a US tax resident?

No. Holding an ITIN has no effect on your residency status for tax purposes. The ITIN is administrative — it lets you file a US tax return when required. Whether you are a US tax resident depends on visa status, the substantial presence test, and other rules that are completely separate from the ITIN.

Can I use my home-country tax ID instead of getting an ITIN?

Sometimes, but rarely for the full scope of US filings. A foreign TIN can appear on Form W-8BEN for some treaty-country residents to claim reduced withholding, and several US platforms will accept it for payee identification. A foreign TIN does not, however, substitute for an ITIN on a US tax return — Form 1040-NR requires a US-issued TIN (ITIN or SSN). For active US filing obligations, the ITIN is the only path.

Does the EIN have an expiration date?

No. Once issued to a business entity, the EIN remains permanently assigned to that entity, even if the business becomes dormant. ITINs are the only one of the three that have an expiration mechanism, and even then only through the three-year non-use rule per current IRS guidance.

ITIN vs EIN vs SSN: Which US Tax ID Do You Actually Need?

The IRS issues three different nine-digit tax IDs and they are not interchangeable. Most non-residents need at least one; many need two; a few need all three. This guide explains who each one is for, which forms to file, and how to tell which apply to your situation.

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The US tax system uses three different nine-digit tax identification numbers, each issued for a different purpose. They look similar, they all appear on US tax forms, and they all start with what looks like a Social Security Number — but they are not interchangeable.

For a non-resident interacting with the US — running a US business, earning US-source income, married to a US citizen, or any combination — the practical question is: which of these three do I actually need, and in what order?

3 IDs

Different purposes, two issuers (IRS + SSA), zero substitution

Only ITIN

Expires (3-year non-use rule) — EIN and SSN are permanent

Most need 2

Foreign LLC owners typically hold both EIN (entity) and ITIN (personal)

This guide answers that with the current IRS forms and rules.

The three numbers at a glance

	SSN	EIN	ITIN
Full name	Social Security Number	Employer Identification Number	Individual Taxpayer Identification Number
Identifies	A person	A business entity	A person
Issuer	Social Security Administration	IRS	IRS
Format	XXX-XX-XXXX	XX-XXXXXXX	9XX-XX-XXXX (starts with 9)
Application form	SS-5	SS-4	W-7 (rev. 12/2024)
Eligibility	US citizens, lawful residents, certain visa holders	Any US business entity	Individuals ineligible for SSN with a US tax need
Expires?	No	No	Yes — if unused on a federal return for 3 consecutive years
Authorises US work?	Yes	n/a	No
Used on personal return	Yes	No	Yes
Used on business return	No	Yes	No

The most consequential differences are the issuer (Social Security Administration vs IRS), who or what it identifies (a person vs an entity), and the expiration mechanism (only the ITIN expires, and only through non-use).

SSN — the one you cannot apply for as a non-resident

The Social Security Number is issued by the Social Security Administration (SSA), not the IRS. Eligibility is restricted: US citizens at birth, lawful permanent residents (green-card holders), and certain temporary visa holders with work authorisation (H-1B, L-1, OPT-eligible F-1, etc.).

A non-resident with no work visa cannot apply for an SSN. The ITIN exists specifically to fill that gap — to give the IRS a way to identify foreign individuals who need to file or be reported on a US return without being SSN-eligible.

If you are reading this from outside the US without US work authorisation, the SSN is not an option for you. The choice is between needing an EIN (for a business), an ITIN (for yourself), or both.

EIN — for the business, not for you

The Employer Identification Number (EIN) identifies a US business entity: an LLC, corporation, partnership, trust, or non-profit. The IRS issues EINs based on Form SS-4. There is no fee, and the application is independent of the owner's tax status.

What requires an EIN:

Forming or operating a US LLC or corporation.
Opening a US business bank account.
Setting up Stripe, PayPal Business, Amazon Seller, or similar payment platforms in the business's name.
Filing business tax returns: Form 1120 (corporation), 1065 (partnership), 5472 (foreign-owned single-member LLC reporting), 1041 (trust).
Hiring US employees and running payroll.

What does not require an EIN:

A non-resident individual receiving payment in their own name from US clients with no US entity in between.
Holding US investments (stocks, bonds) in your individual name through a brokerage.

Foreign owners apply for an EIN without needing an SSN or ITIN. The Form SS-4 application can be sent by mail, fax, or — for international applicants — by phone to the IRS international line, which assigns the EIN on the same call. The EIN does not expire and is permanently bound to the entity that received it.

ITIN — for you personally

The ITIN identifies an individual non-resident or foreign national who has a US federal tax obligation but is not eligible for an SSN. The IRS issues ITINs based on Form W-7 (current revision 12/2024).

Who needs an ITIN:

Non-resident individuals filing Form 1040-NR because they have US-source income, US-effectively-connected business income, or other reportable US tax positions.
Foreign individuals claiming a treaty benefit on Form W-8BEN where a US TIN is required.
Non-resident spouses of US citizens or residents filing jointly (Married Filing Jointly under Section 6013(g)).
Non-resident dependents claimed on a US tax return in specific cases.
Foreign individuals subject to US tax reporting on passive income — bank deposit interest, partnership distributions, real estate transactions under FIRPTA, broker-issued dividends.

Who does not need an ITIN:

US citizens or anyone eligible for an SSN — apply for the SSN instead.
A non-resident whose only US connection is through a US LLC where they have no current personal filing obligation (the LLC's EIN handles the business-level reporting; the personal ITIN is needed only when a 1040-NR is required).
A non-resident operating purely from outside the US with no US-source income at all.

The ITIN does not authorise US work, does not establish US tax residency, and does not entitle the holder to Social Security benefits. It is purely an identifying number for the federal tax system.

Source: IRS — Individual Taxpayer Identification Number.

Rendering diagram…

Which tax ID do you actually need? Match yourself to the right path

When you need both EIN and ITIN

The most common pattern for non-resident entrepreneurs and investors involves both numbers:

A US LLC has the EIN for the entity's identifying needs — bank, platforms, business returns.
The foreign owner has the ITIN for personal filing — the 1040-NR that reports the LLC's income flowing through (if disregarded) or that reports the K-1 from a partnership.

The two numbers live on different forms and serve different purposes. Substituting one for the other will fail at the form level: an EIN on a 1040-NR is rejected because the return is personal; an ITIN on a business bank account application produces confusion at the bank's KYC step.

Typical sequence:

Form the US LLC with the state of formation.
Apply for the EIN via Form SS-4 (the LLC needs this within weeks of formation to open a bank account).
Operate through the EIN for the next several months — banking, platforms, vendor agreements.
Apply for the ITIN via Form W-7 when the first US tax filing is being prepared, typically aligned with the first 1040-NR + 5472 cycle.

There is no rule that the EIN must precede the ITIN or vice versa. The sequence above is just what matches the practical timeline of most LLC-based businesses.

The expiration difference

Only the ITIN has an expiration mechanism, and only through one rule: "If an ITIN isn't used on a U.S. federal tax return for any 3 consecutive tax years, it expires on December 31 after the third tax year of non-use." That is the exact wording from the IRS ITIN expiration guidance.

The EIN does not expire. Once assigned to an entity, it stays with that entity indefinitely — even if the entity becomes dormant, dissolves, or transitions to a different state.

The SSN does not expire. Once issued, the SSN is permanent.

For ITIN holders who file at least one US federal return every three years, the expiration rule never triggers in practice. For those who stop filing — typically because they sold the LLC, moved out of US-source income, or married someone who now files for them on a joint return — the clock starts and the ITIN can lapse silently. Renewing is the same procedural step as the initial application (Form W-7) but with the "Renew an existing ITIN" box ticked, and the renewed ITIN keeps the same number.

What each tax ID can and cannot do

Use case	SSN	EIN	ITIN
File personal US tax return (Form 1040, 1040-NR)	✓	✗	✓
File business US tax return (Form 1120, 1065)	✗	✓	✗
Open US business bank account	✗	✓	✗
Open US personal bank account	✓	✗	✓ at some banks
Sign Form W-8BEN as foreign person claiming treaty benefit	✗	✗	✓
Sign Form W-9 as US person	✓	✓	✗
Authorise US work	✓	✗	✗
Claim Social Security benefits	✓	✗	✗
File Form 5472 for foreign-owned SMLLC	n/a	✓ (entity field)	✓ (foreign owner field)
Report 1042-S US-source withholding	✓	✗	✓

The table makes the substitution problem visible. There is no single tax ID that does everything for a non-resident with a US business; the EIN and ITIN cover non-overlapping sets of obligations and both are usually needed.

Common scenarios

Non-resident sole proprietor freelancer with US clients, no entity

No EIN needed (no US business entity to identify).
ITIN needed for W-8BEN treaty claims and any 1040-NR filing.

Non-resident Amazon FBA seller with a US single-member LLC

EIN for the LLC: Amazon Seller account, Stripe payouts, bank account.
ITIN for the foreign owner: 1040-NR with the LLC's pass-through income, W-8BEN for treaty claims, identification on Form 5472.

Non-resident investor with US brokerage account holding US stocks

No EIN needed (individual account, no entity).
ITIN needed to file 1040-NR claiming credit for any 1042-S withholding, and to claim treaty benefits via W-8BEN.

Non-resident foreign owner of US real estate sold during the year

EIN for the US LLC if the property is held in one.
ITIN for the foreign seller to file the FIRPTA-related 8288-B (pre-sale) or 1040-NR (post-sale).

Non-resident spouse of US citizen filing jointly

No EIN.
ITIN for the spouse to be on the joint Form 1040.

Frequently asked questions

The FAQ block above answers the most common ID-confusion questions. If your structure has multiple entities, multiple individuals, and overlapping US activity, an eligibility review maps the full set of IDs and filings before you commit to a path.

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